pawleys cup 2009

just back from south carolina where I played 72 very sloppy wet holes of golf with friends in the annual pawleys cup. I played from the very back tees and the course played extremely long, I'd say over 7300 yards. the ball plugged on every shot and we played lift clean and place. It is hard to drive too far off line when the ball doesn't roll and I drove well all week. it seemed like I was constantly talking my fairway woods out to play my second shots and with the small green at DeBordieu I missed lots of greens. My chipping and pitching around the greens were really poor and I was afraid of not contacting the ball first and solidly on these short shots and so had poor touch even when I did so. It was not as if I missed all of these shots and never got it up and down but I was anxious because I did chunk and thin a few of these shots. my iron play was poor as well with lots of pulls.

here is the reason that I pulled and mis-hit so many iron shots in the simplest terms; there is too much backswing where I become out of position / disconnected and not enough rotation through. or in slang, I can not "go" because I have to wait to reconnect.

the last nine holes I felt something which felt very "right". I was playing a shot over water into a small green and there was a one club wind in my face. over the green is no good and I was already 2 down so taking more club was not a good option. I thought to myself, " if I just make a good shoulder turn behind the ball I will have enough leverage or " power" built up on my backswing where I will be able to change directions smoothly and therefore play a solid/strong iron shot which will not be "eaten up" by the wine. the backswing felt coiled and slow and shorter than usual.....the front swing happened without initiation and the divot was thin and in front of the ball and the shot was beautiful I played 3 or 4 amazingly solid and straight shots coming in trying to slowly turn back....very long drives and a 3-wood at number 6 I will remember for a long time. the shots which also stick out were two wedge shots...a 100 yard shot on number 6 where I hit it stiff and a 45 yard wedge shot to #7. I had been really struggling with these and turning back with my body rather than swinging away with my hands gave the shot a totally different feel to it. these shots were played without my hands in a sense. I would like to explore this more. because my commitment to be ready to play the second shot on the first hole at the BFCC in May is on my mind after this horrible anxiety at the Pawleys Cup.